Biotech Bloodbath, with EpiPen at the Epicenter

It was a bloodbath in the biotechnology sector yesterday. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) dropped more than 3.3%, its worst one-day decline since late June. Many smaller companies in the sector got hit much harder, losing two- or three-times as much.

But one name in particular – Mylan NV (MYL) – has really been taking it on the chin. It lost 5.4% yesterday, following declines of 4.8% and 1.6% on the prior two days. That’s because its EpiPen anti-allergy injector is at the epicenter of a huge new debate over soaring drug prices.

Mylan has hiked the price of an EpinPen 2-Pak 17 times in about nine years.

You’ve probably heard about the EpiPen, or may have used it yourself. It’s designed as an emergency treatment for anyone experiencing a severe allergic reaction known as anaphylactic shock.

Parents are often required to purchase EpiPens for their children in case they go into shock at school.

The problem is that Mylan has been jacking up the price of the EpiPen. A two-pack of the injectors now lists for more than $600, compared with around $100 in 2007 when Mylan bought the rights to the drug injectors. In fact, Mylan reportedly raised EpiPen’s price 17 times – with the pace of those hikes accelerating recently due to the potential for generic competition.

Mylan isn’t the first drug company to come under fire for pricing strategies. Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) and Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl. Inc. (VRX) have also faced Congressional pressure. But with the presidential election right around the corner, it has become an easy whipping boy for Hillary Clinton and several Democratic and Republican lawmakers.

Mylan is responding by saying that insurance covers a large amount of the cost for EpiPen. It also said it would broaden its existing discount programs, including a savings card that’s designed to offset the out-of-pocket deductibles that consumers have to pay.

But it’s in a tough spot from an investment standpoint because EpiPen is Mylan’s best-selling drug. It accounted for more than $1 billion of the firm’s 2015 $9.5 billion in revenue.

The U.S. healthcare system is still a mess.

Can Mylan talk its way out of this crisis? Unclear. But one thing is abundantly clear – to me and others: The U.S. healthcare system is still a mess.

Insurers are backing out of the Obamacare program because they can’t make money off of it. Deductibles, co-payments, and other out-of-pocket costs continue to rise for average Americans. And none of the so-called “solutions” bandied about seem to be working to fix the system.

That’s my take, anyway. What’s yours? Do you think Mylan’s price hikes were justified, or corporate profiteering at the expense of average Americans? What can be done about soaring drug costs, deductibles, and out-of-pocket expenses?

From an investment standpoint, do you think Mylan and its cohorts are worth buying here? Or is the political pressure so great, the best option is just to stay away? Please take some time out to comment on these very important issues when you get a chance.

Until next time,

Mike

Our Readers Speak

Judging from your comments in the past few days, it doesn’t seem like many of you are card-carrying members of the “Janet Yellen Fan Club.” Nor do you seem all that enthusiastic about the outlook for the markets and the economy.

Reader Jerry said: “This is a no-growth economy, fabricated by easy money. It’s like a balloon floating around in a room full of needles, never knowing where the fatal prick will come from.”

Reader Lawrence D. said: “My father often said ‘History teaches us one thing only and that is that we never learn.’ We watched what trade unions did in England and then repeated the same steps in North America to the length that the tail starts wagging the dog.

“Economic indicators and past performances should be a very real warning to us all, yet the media and the so-called pundits keep saying the same old, same old — that we’ve nothing to worry about! I for one am very worried and will take all I can from your newsletter and wealth report to guide me in the coming crisis.”

Reader Justin added: “In the short term, it certainly looks like a sell-off is setting up. We’ll likely see a routine summer-to-fall decline in the stock market at the minimum. After that comes the big question: ‘Will this be the one that pops the bubble?’

“Something that warrants watching is the yield curve. If we do get a decent drop in the stock market, there will be the inevitable flight to safety in Treasury bonds, with the longer-term durations having preference. That could flatten, even invert, the yield curve. Then the bottom will drop out of the economy, and there will be nothing the Fed or anybody else can do about it.”

Lastly, Reader Howard had some advice on where to invest in trying times like these: “The answer is to buy GOLD. It’s already sold and beaten down. It has a better chance of going up in the next 10 years than negatively priced bonds. Gold ownership is easily transferable and tradeable and protected from government meddling, failing banks, and reclaiming with bail-ins.”

I appreciate all the comments. We’re definitely seeing more hidden tremors in various corners of the market, suggesting investors are growing increasingly uneasy about the future. While there hasn’t been a sharp break … yet … I believe the risk of one is growing. Judging from indicators like the VIX, many investors aren’t prepared for it either.

Other Developments of the Day

Rescuers in Italy are continuing to dig through the rubble from Wednesday’s deadly earthquake. The 6.2-magnitude quake struck in central Italy, killing at least 247 people in several smaller towns.

I’m not the only one who thinks the Federal Reserve is completely lost, swaying in the wind with every data release, failing to stick to any sort of long-term plan, and repeatedly crying “Wolf” without actually doing anything. Bond market managers, who handle hundreds of billions of dollars in assets, feel the same way, according to Bloomberg.

Said one: “There’s a failure to communicate.” Said another: “The Fed has lost credibility.” Said a third: “The market is looking for some clarity on the path for rates.” We’ll see if Chairman Janet Yellen delivers or not tomorrow morning.

Investors care much less about earnings per share these days. Instead, they’re buying stocks for dividends in the era of NIRP/ZIRP. That’s the conclusion of this Wall Street Journal story, which notes that an analysis of the correlation between dividends and stock performance suggests investors are more sensitive to payouts than at any time since 1993.

The problem? Companies are going to have a tougher time sustaining dividend payouts if earnings keep coming in weak. S&P 500 firms are paying out the greatest percentage of profits as dividends since 2009, with some paying out even more than they earn.

What do you think about the Fed’s flip-flopping? Are bond managers right to complain about the inconsistencies? How about the intense focus on dividend yield? Is it healthy? Or are companies responding by doing misguided things, like paying out too much of their earnings as dividends or borrowing to make dividend payments? Let me know in the comment section.

Until next time,

Mike Larson

Mike Larson graduated from Boston University with a B.S. degree in Journalism and a B.A. degree in English in 1998, and went to work for Bankrate.com. There, he learned the mortgage and interest rates markets inside and out. Mike then joined Weiss Research in 2001. He is the editor of Safe Money Report. He is often quoted by the Washington Post, Reuters, Dow Jones Newswires, Orlando Sentinel, Palm Beach Post and Sun-Sentinel, and he has appeared on CNN, Bloomberg Television and CNBC.

{65 comments }

RobThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:14 pm

Mylan is acting more like a drug dealer which gets people hooked on the drug and then hikes the prices. When they state most of the increase is paid by insurance, we all know the American taxpayer will foot the bill for another greedy corp.

Gilbert CronkThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:14 pm

Where does reader Howard get the idea that gold is “safe from government meddling”. Is he not aware of what Roosevelt did in the thirties? Did I miss a law passed to prevent the government from doing the same thing?

Mary SaundersFriday, August 26, 2016 at 3:31 pm

I do not think any real estate, stock, or commodity is safe in the U.S. presently, even for those presently connected to political clout, although I understand thosr who think local clout is safe. Call me crazy names, but I think I am merely being sensible

Rod GriffithsThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:15 pm

The business plans of the pharmaceutical companies are flawed because of their symbiotic relationship with the insurance companies. The users of the drugs, patients, cannot afford the drugs without help from the insurance companies. The insurance companies can generate enough premium revenue without increasing premiums. Fewer and fewer patients can afford the increased premiums. Therefore both the pharmaceutical and the insurance companies are joined at the hip in a death spiral. As far as I can guess the only solution is to develop cheaper medications that are closer to the patients ability to pay without significant insurance financial input.

PaulThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:25 pm

Any business deserves to make a “reasonable profit”. In addition, in our human nature we are suppose to help one another out. Epi is the opposite and all about ME versus WE! We do need more competition to suppress the price gouging. And crooked Hillary Clinton is one to talk about epi greed, her middle name is greedy. We need big time changes in this country and the status quo is not the answer

Larry HendersonThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:33 pm

I was floored when I saw the price they want for EpiPen. I only take it when I have to (when I start to itch on both sides of my nose) I have 2 out of date injections and will not pay their price. when I can get it for $100 from a reliable source.

Carol CherryThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:35 pm

Both my husband and I should keep an epicenter because of severe allergies. WE CAN NOT AFFORD TO BUY THIS DRUG EVEN IF THE COMPANY SOLD IT WITH A COUPON. I BELIEVE THAT THE COMPANY is being given advice from Hillary Clinton and is sinister plot to kill off Americans in the name e of her greed and globalism.

Jan EggerSunday, August 28, 2016 at 2:13 am

Really, Ms. Cherry?? — Accusing Hillary Clinton of causing the price of the EpiPen to rise to levels you can’t afford (you call it the Epicenter – sic). Lady – try to remember back when Pres. Clinton was in office (he being the only President who left us with a Fed. budget surplus ) — when early on in his administration Mrs. Clinton made Hercluean attempts to pass health care ins. reforms — including the Single Payer Plan (the only answer to the escalating greed of big pharmas and health ins. cos alike). She was rebuffed by Congress, altho’ a Demo. majority at the time). As for accusing her of “globalism”: What do you even mean? She was Sec’y of State= a global job by definition. If you have some evidence of “greed” you should present it — otherwise review your history before you passing on your ill-informed public comments.

ThomasThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:37 pm

“DEBT out of control!!” No, not the kind you immediately think off, I am not referring to Government debt, (but that too), I am referring to CORPORATE DEBT!!
“For every $100 Dollars of Corporate debt, Corporations now only have $15.00 Dollars in cash to service that debt! Corporate America is drowning in debt, unlike the Government, this debt must be paid back!! With an economy not growing fast enough, (or not even at all in real terms) where will the money to pay back the debt come from?? This is true for 90% listed Corporations!! The Swan event of this cycle is going to be the DEBT bubble that is about to burst! Buckle up – It is going to be ugly to say the least!!

JoeThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:37 pm

Mylan’s CEO is the daughter of Joe Manchin, senator from West Virginia, a Democrat, and an endorser of Hillary Clinton. She has also given huge amounts to the Clinton Foundation. And Ryan and McConnell sit on the sides saying nothing and doing nothing. The United States is in deep, deep trouble.

JohnThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:43 pm

I have to buy epipens every year as a healthcare provider and I am personally irate with this kind of behavior. I hope Mylan gets creamed, but they probably won’t. It illustrates everything that’s wrong with our healthcare system. Why the American public puts up with this nonsense is hard to comprehend. Until we remove the private insurance industry as the gatekeeper for our healthcare system and allow the public to negotiate equitable drug prices like every other intelligent democracy on the planet, we’ll continue to get the shaft and see our healthcare costs explode with or without obamacare. This has been going on for far too long. Enough!

Jan EggerSunday, August 28, 2016 at 2:18 am

Hear! Hear! You said it well…You’ve got it! But who in Govt. is listening…?

JoeThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:52 pm

I think at this time these stocks and all drug stocks should be avoided after the elections and the coming year we will be able to buy these solis stocks at a much better price right now the politicians are howling for blood they don”‘t mint ion that the biggest PAC in DC are the drug companies so let them stop beating their chest until after the elections and the dust settles Thx Joe

joseThursday, August 25, 2016 at 5:58 pm

All these pharma companies are the same the only thing they want is money and more money. The pharma and the food company they work together. The food company sells the poison in those processed foods and GMO and once you get sick from eating then the pharma company sells you the partial antidote. When I say partial I really mean it. The dont want to cure you because once cured they dont get money from you so by selling partial cure they guarantee themselves a constant flow of money

LanceFriday, August 26, 2016 at 3:14 pm

True our land is sick, just like Trump says. we are reduced to parasitism as a way of life . Government watchdog agencies are bought by big Pharma, and food manipulation for Biotechnology profits at our expense. Revolving door government. It is this monopolistic cabal that poisons us and sells us the false remedies. Sick sick sick. Putin rejects all GMOs, he has more integrity than most US politicians here. Biotech is working to make all our foods patented GMO to make a killing for themselves while we are killed off. When Americans wise up and reject the billions in propanda corporations buy us off with we may get well.

ladeanFriday, August 26, 2016 at 6:05 pm

No one has addressed the pharmacutical conspiracy concerning cancer drugs, the costs (one treatment of Opdivo is $27000) the money made by oncologists and the natural cancer treatments not available and certainly not covered by insurance but with much higher success rates. Our healthcare program is so corrupt.

gerald o cameron jrThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:00 pm

— EpiPen is not the 1st to have high prices. I was told by 2 Dr. to have 2 EpiPens on me at all times, 35+ years ago and I have not had one in my pocket at all.
— But my wife had to use Kadian, while I worked insurance charged us $15 for 90 days, I retired 1 st quarter same amount cost me $675.00 per quarter. Each year it when up.The last year it was $$1495.00 per quarter same amount. Then 2013 I found that President Regan had made a law 26 years ago this medicine was to cost us zero same amount. Finally the law was enforced and it cost us zero for 2 quarters. Local drug stores started changing $35.00 same amount. I told many of our representatives about this and so far none have done anything. Mike my wife and I have had diner with you 3 times over the years, Thanks for doing all the work and reporting you do.

Dr. BThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:01 pm

Don’t fall for it, Mr. Larson —
Better to stick with your ‘macro’ observations…. ‘Micro’ requires research — in this case what the pharma Corporation Mylan made sure to ‘donate’ to the Clinton Foundation before the media started reporting on the price kiting. You are living in a time and place where it takes diligence to avoid becoming a “useful idiot.”

Jim Smith, MDThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:02 pm

Pure greed. The cost of the material in the epi-pen is about a dollar. The idea for patents on medicine is to protect them while the development costs are recouped, but this is too much. Similar to Valeant that raised the price on an older drug (no new development costs) from about $25 to $700. The other problem is that the US pays for most of the development costs for the rest of the world. I agree the health care is a mess, but until someone is willing to make less (insurance companies, Drug companies, hospitals and doctors) it will not be solved. It can’s all be blamed on the government and the ACA.

David ReynoldsonThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:04 pm

You didn’t mention the outrageous salary for the Mylan CEO. Who happens to be the daughter of a senator.

TomThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:05 pm

I remember a Republican congress, when George Bush was in office, passing laws that made it all but impossible to negotiate for lower drug cost . Thanks for that Republicans. Mylan says insurers pay the extra cost. For most people, if they don’r have to pay themselves don’t worry about cost run ups. After all insurance pays for it. Such is life in America.

MikeThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:09 pm

At some point the Fed will realize that self-interested Savers spend only a fraction of their earnings from savings, and when you drive interest rates to zero, you then drive earnings to zero, and you thus drive spending to zero. The Debtors don’t have the spare change to spend; they are paying monthly on their loans. So, if you want to help GDP, stop artificially depressing interest rates!

Thomas SchechterThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:09 pm

Until we have drug price control,like Nixon did, or even better, universal health care, known as Medicare for all, we will be in trouble.
Not only are insurers walking away from the Affordable Healthcare Act, but so are doctors and hospitals, By refusing to accept any plan, or only Medicare, or only one plan, having insurance leaves people no better off than with no insurance,and using the er as their primary doctor.

NelsThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:10 pm

The whole health care cost problem boils down to the health industry’s violation of laws that every other business must follow. Your mechanic would go to jail if he opened the hood, did whatever he wanted to and then presented you with the bill, yet doctors get away with this every day. Mechanics are required to give you a binding estimate before doing any work, and there is no exemption from that law for doctors.

As your article makes clear, the high and rising cost of medicines is caused by collusion between the drug manufacturers, the FDA and the insurance companies, all of which gain from more regulations, higher costs and less competition.

Tort reform could save billions of dollars in healthcare costs every year – but the medical industry is roughly 1/5 of the US GDP, which would put it at about a $4 Trillion dollar industry. Shaving a few billions off isn’t going to change anything. Tort reform might be worthwhile, but it will not have any measurable affect on medical costs, no matter how well we do it.

HowardThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:12 pm

Hi Mike

“What do you think about the Fed’s flip-flopping? Are bond managers right to complain about the inconsistencies?”

Two things to consider here. Firstly the policy itself and the evolution of investment and manufacturing industries response’s in their own longer term planning in this new paradigm. Secondly the less savvy investor and their yield chasing efforts to keep up and get a return on their investments. My question is what is the Fed going to do when they realize that the one thing they are suppose to provide is lost and at their own hands. Currency trust stability and investment trust vulnerability and reliability, are at a crossroads and the Fed are missing in action.

RobertThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:15 pm

If this were some non-critical drug, I’d say price it to whatever the market will bear. . .but this is a “life or death situational drug” and as such is critical to patient survivability, making it profiteering at it’s worst. Their baloney about insurance coverage doesn’t wash (not everybody has it) and making discounts available only to select audiences is discrimination. And they wonder why people scream “more regulation” of the drug companies. Not for it, but without self regulation….???

RichardThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:22 pm

As to their response, someone needs to inform Mylan who is paying the insurance premiums.They need better spin doctors.

DdThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:24 pm

The congressional inquiry is nothing more than jawboning. For the examples you cite, how many have actually decreased price… none! Let Mylan price come in a bit, there is probably one more leg down, then buy with both hands. Valeant went down more for acct fraud perptrated by former Corp Controller and CFO. Gilead down because of competing hep c drugs being approve. Epi has no competition and there aRe no alternate therapies even being developed. A couple BX rated drugs are out there, but very hard to take share unless AB rated.

Buy Mylan on next dip!

DdThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:26 pm

Forgot to mention that Turing is still fleecing HIV patients, but noone in Congress cares, there is no publicity to have with Shkreli anymore…

Rodger BuffordThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:29 pm

From an investor perspective it is great for Mylan to increase revenues on a product with continuing strong demand. From a patient perspective it is awful—even evil.

For Mylan to say that insurance pays most of the cost reflects a pervasive attitude that insurance is “other people’s money” so none of us should be concerned about it—an attitude which is fundamentally wrong. Insurance is our money—the difference is that is collective rather than individual money. But someone, namely us, ultimately pays.

Unless we face the problem of treating insurance as other people’s money we cannot solve the healthcare crisis. We want Lamborghini-like health care so long as we do not have to pay for it because we cannot. We love the illusion that someone else will pay for us. To solve the healthcare crisis we must meet the enemy and realize it is us. Only then might we begin to realistically face the costs and move toward rational and economically feasible health care models. Mylan is only a small part of this larger problem.

JackThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:38 pm

The Fed is the cause of the poor economy as long as they follow Keynesian thinking, the economy will never get back to prosperity. The Fed should be audited and reorganized with top business types (not bankers) on the board after approval by Congress and the Governors of the states in each region.

E KierkloThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:44 pm

Healthcare is designed as both a clinical system and a for profit business model and they are inrxtrincably joined so as to complicate and obfuscate. We will have to come to terms with some acceptable measure of rationing finite resources or money will always be the default.

Mike SThursday, August 25, 2016 at 6:51 pm

Yellen and her team act like typical politicians ..that means they lie.

DOUGThursday, August 25, 2016 at 7:07 pm

The key statement is the company faces generic competition and the company is trying to get its return on investment on the backs of its customers.

Do I think the price hike is justified? No. The company paid too much for its rights knowing the current pricing structure. Now management is trying to save face. Let them swing at the end of their own rope.

tasmicaThursday, August 25, 2016 at 7:11 pm

Your question: “Do you think Mylan’s price hikes were justified, or corporate profiteering at the expense of average Americans?” Since Mylan purchased the rights to the drug, i.e., no R&D expenditures, costs approximately $3 to produce (including the dispenser), and is essential to millions of people as an effective rapid response device to a life-saving event, raising the price from$100 9 years ago to $600 now with no apparent increase in production cost can easily be seen as profiteering ….and tone-deaf in an election year…. They want to “blame the broken system” (and it is), but they had and have control over what they charge for that drug. Don’t they have a VP of Ethical Decision-making? Apparently not. The system is broken and they intend to take advantage of it.

Ferrari fredThursday, August 25, 2016 at 7:16 pm

A lot of my money is out of the market. I have been selling PUTS, do you think this is a good move? I had to buy one ,but then sold a CALL on it.

frank kesslerThursday, August 25, 2016 at 8:05 pm

mike, the ceo is paid 10 grand an hour. this speaks for itself. thanks, frank

Jan EggerSunday, August 28, 2016 at 3:17 am

Here is a direct quote from the CEO and her compensation info — per NYT, 8/26/2016: “I am running a business. I am a for-profit business. I am not hiding from that,” said Heather Bresch, whose total compensation at Mylan has gone from about $2.5 million to nearly $19 million during the same time the EpiPen’s price has risen fourfold.

WGHThursday, August 25, 2016 at 9:01 pm

Invest in PFE!

warren abramsThursday, August 25, 2016 at 10:02 pm

epipen….it’s a gaget, not medicine. The medicine can be delivered in a simple and cheap common syringe, with out the hoopala . I carried a small red box with 2 needles, ready to use, for years. But I guess nobody could patent that and screw the public.

Some years back there was another controversy over the price of a heart pill. Doctors said it was a cheap way to stay alive, only a few dollars a pill. Then someone found the same pill, used to worm sheep, at 5 cents a pill. I checked with the feed store and there they were, over the counter sales to anyone at a nickle each.

Bret SmithThursday, August 25, 2016 at 11:11 pm

All of the upper management of Big Pharma should be compensated at $20 Million/year each. This is what’s fair for all the hard work they do lobbying Congress to keep our For Profit Health Care System maximizing share holder return. We need to do away with any and all subsidies and let the poor and indigent rot on our streets or be turned into food for the wealthy….
Trump / Clinton 2016

John HoppeThursday, August 25, 2016 at 11:31 pm

Why are you asking if Mylan’s price hikes are justified? Of course NOT!!
They are shamelessly ripping of the public. And they will be guilty when congress
dictates price controls for such high priced drugs. Shame on you Mylan!

FrankFriday, August 26, 2016 at 12:20 am

Agreed:
1. Investor greed (otherwise known as herd behavior): “….they’re buying stocks for dividends in the era of NIRP/ZIRP.” When N/ZIRP blows up, so will these stocks and most of the market.
2. The Fed: “The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind….”. Some old songs carry the truth. Thanks for pointing out the breeze to become a hurricane.
3. What else is new: “…corporate profiteering at the expense of average Americans?”

johnFriday, August 26, 2016 at 1:12 am

Dear mike. I work for pfizer..but we make the epipen. Odd isn’t it. Contracted workers are voting on a contract with 2% to 3% raises. Today.

GordonFriday, August 26, 2016 at 1:45 am

Yes the Mylan pen has gone up from a $100 in 2007 to $600 in 2016. By comparison the CEO’S salary has gone up from 2 million and change to 18 million and change over the same time frame. The is obscene no matter how you slice and dice it. How long are the people of America going to sit back and watch their meagre wages decrease as they have been doing and watch the obscene ascension of CEO’S wages as is the case here and throughout the CEO world. No wonder a man of Trumps low calibre is resonating with the people.

voice of reasonSaturday, August 27, 2016 at 1:28 pm

its amazing gordie that you missed the fact that overpaid CEO of mylan is the daughter of a long term DEMOCRATIC SENATOR AND YOU ALSO MISSED THE FACT THAT THAT THE CEO OF MYLAN CONTRIBUTED VERY HEAVILY TO THE CORRUPT HILLERY CLINTON ELECTION ….so please when you talk of low caliber are you really not talking of hillery and bill clinton and lets throw barack obama in there too he is completely corrupt too and has a proven history he cant be trusted

GordonFriday, August 26, 2016 at 2:00 am

Further to my comment after reading further is Mylan stating that the Pen is covered by insurance so why all the noise? Well dear Mylan its the taxpayer picking up the tax higher insurance costs. As far as your other statement that these companies have “become whipping boys” during the current election cycle is really astounding. Its time these companies were taken behind the woodshed and given a good thrashing they way the control people through outrageous health costs. Look at their obscene profit statements come on Washington its time to grow a pair and step in and put a stop to this racketeering. You ask “can Mylan talk their way out of this crisis?” If Washington was doing its due diligence this mess would never have occurred. These companies are operating in a Wild Wild West shoot out rob the bank manner its disgraceful. Obamacare is a disaster as even with high premiums these so called helpers of the sick are backing out claiming there is no money to be made. Yes its all about the money money money with these leeches. I agree with reader Howard gold is the only answer but be patient. Its the one thing that the powers that be bad mouth and belittle. Its the one constant threat that threatens their fiat currency the good apple in a basket of bad ones.

Janet HockenberryFriday, August 26, 2016 at 3:09 am

My doctor wrote a script for an epi pen for me. My other one was real old so I threw it out. When I went to pick it up and they told me how much it cost, I told them to keep it. I am allergic to nuts. I won’t be getting one of those anymore.

GraemeFriday, August 26, 2016 at 3:37 am

Here is an interesting fact. In NZ Doctors never use Epipens. You get the same effect from an ampule of adrenaline and syringe costing a few cents

Eric LeeFriday, August 26, 2016 at 3:38 am

This is of interest to me for personal reasons. My father helped to set up Mylan. However,
I am happy not have any financial interest in Mylan and I feel so negative about health care in general in the US and other places, People do not need all these drugs. I think that health care in the US is 17% of GDP. Many countries have better health with about 7%.

RobertFriday, August 26, 2016 at 5:33 am

The price gouging is disgraceful. If you have no insurance or a high deductible, you’re screwed. If you have insurance, everyone else is screwed as premiums rise to pay rediculouly inflated prices. And the tax payer is screwed while supplying these drugs to Welfare patients. Many years ago, the Epi Pen cost a few dollars. There’s no reason for it to have taken such a crazy price hike. It’s epinephrine. A generic drug in a convenient delivery system. Greed shall bring down our house of cards. We are getting closer.

ianFriday, August 26, 2016 at 6:23 am

I have a solution,Do not fall ill in America.

JimMonday, August 29, 2016 at 12:29 am

I think ian has the best solution. Supply and demand might really c0me into focus if suddenly folks became more healthy, down goes demand. Down goes prices, maybe?

DeniseFriday, August 26, 2016 at 8:17 am

Pharma company big shots are dreadful. It’s let’s bankrupt sick folks and HMOs so the big shots can get their multi-million dollar salaries. If I were their minister, I’d kick them out of church.

JoelFriday, August 26, 2016 at 8:42 am

Greed is a staple of human character. If you thought a pharma company, or any other company for that matter, could make you a ton of money – not a one of you would dig into their pricing, ethics, policies, etc. – you’d just buy! There are certainly varying levels of greed, but we all have some form of the disease – myself included.

RoseFriday, August 26, 2016 at 10:08 am

When looking at the increases in cost it is necessary to look at the the other production costs and how they have increased. How many new regulations have increased production cost? How about wage increases? How about health care premiums for the workers? And don’t forget tax increases.
Focusing on one thing only, does not show the whole picture, it just “muddies the water” to create animosity and unjustified resentments.

ClarkFriday, August 26, 2016 at 10:56 am

For Mylan to respond “Most of the cost is covered by insurance” makes my blood boil. That response exposes the fatal flaw of our broken system: everybody thinks that someone else pays the bill. Are we that stupid? Do we really think that the insurance company pays? Look at their profit margins: they’re obscene. And the management salaries for medical insurance companies (not to mention bloated hospital administration) are stratospheric and rapidly inflating. We pay!! Until the medical consumer becomes a shopper for quality and price, we will remain victims of the vampires in the system. My medical costs (for two retired) exceed $13,000 per annum. I, for one, am absolutely positive that it’s NOT the insurance companies that are footing the bill. I am. Mylan should be first convicted of extortion, then exploitation, and then forced to refund anything they’ve charged consumers that exceeds cost plus a reasonable profit margin. Enough with the profiteering! Let’s end the ripoff.

RoySunday, August 28, 2016 at 1:35 pm

I agree with Clark. Mylan is charging excessive cost for a life support service. Also, insurance companies should not be allowed to drop service in a state while cherry-picking states to continue service. Why don’t they just have clients making insurance payments with no payouts allowed so they can just make a profit killing for themselves. To heck with the paying client. They do make increased cost adjustment for clients before they drop them anyway!

SandorFriday, August 26, 2016 at 12:18 pm

The predecessor of Epi Pen, which I have used was simple and effective and cost a few dollars. The new Patented Epipen does not offer more for the patient than the earlier ones, in fact its use is more complicated! The FDA should encourage competition and prevent Mylan’s monopolist status. Further in Europe the Mylan’s greed is tapered as the Epipan is sold about $65-70 pending on different pharmacies.

MonetFriday, August 26, 2016 at 5:52 pm

Medicare is asking CEO expertise for increases in earnings and wages in applying proactive healthcare.

Scott PaulFriday, August 26, 2016 at 6:14 pm

It’s outrageous that Mylan would try to justify the price of the EpiPens by saying that insurance covers a large amount of the cost for EpiPen. So, just rip off the insurance companies, knowing that they’ll pass the costs down the line. Does make me start to feel that (as much as I distrust the government being able to run a system efficiently) perhaps a single-payer system is the way to go. Our insurance company is terminating all policies in our state at the end of this year, because they can’t make a profit under Ocare. So, the system is definitely broken.

Mary SaundersSaturday, August 27, 2016 at 12:27 am

Did Mylan lobby to get this product mandated for some students in some schools? I read something about this in a brief look on social media. Mandating specific medical products is a growth industry with intense lobbying involved.

The issue of informed consent applies to careful researchers and wealthy patients. If a company’s product harms a doctor or the child of a doctor, a successful lawsuit may ensue in which the harmed person recovers. This could trickle down. For now, it has not, substantially, relative to the amount of risk out in the “mess,” as it has been called here.

Resistance to mandates will rise, as more scandals hit. Lawsuits will rise as well.

People already go offshore for treatments. Will they move from one state to another? Will they move out of the U.S.? Will home-schooling increase? Can things change state by state enough to make a gradual transition possible? It has to change. It is a question of how, what, when, where, and why.

john eastmanSunday, August 28, 2016 at 4:21 pm

As a beekeeper I have to have the epic-pens close in case someone goes into shock after a bee sting. Some people are severely allergic to insect stings. I have to replace the epic-pens every 2 years as they expire. It is unconscionable the price increases. I don’t understand why some other company simply does not sell this product for $10. The free market is the solution to excessive drug prices not government.
john

KathleenMonday, August 29, 2016 at 9:05 am

Epi pen is a life saving device on par with defibrillator and other emergent care equipment. I have four grand kids with severe food allergies and we’ve already needed to use an epic pen injection to keep the youngest breathing while getting to the hospital. Schools not the parents should be required to stock epi pens in the event a child has a lift threatening allergic reaction caused by exposure to an allergen not prohibited in the school. Pass the cost of enough epi pens to cover 10% of the school population and see how fast the government pushes the FDA to come up with a viable and cost effective solution. This isn’t a choice, this is a responsibility all need to be involved in.

RogerMonday, August 29, 2016 at 12:07 pm

Charge whatever you want for an item for which there are alternatives for or which are discretionary. The epi pen is the only option for a life threatening condition. Mylan’s pricing decision is obscenely predatory and should be criminal, it is certainly morally dispicable.This product can be bought in Cannada fo $30-40 and it is sold at a profit at that pricing. The pharmaceutical industry is begging for excessive federal regulation and much as I oppose that, in the face of this type unconscionable greed I would have to say price controls may be the lesser of the two evils.